Ask the Captain: Are most airline pilots from the military?

Question: Are most airline pilots former United States Air Force members?

— submitted by reader Tom Whalen, Holt, Fla.

Answer: No, most of the airline pilots today come from a civilian background. The time (in years) that the military demands from pilots is over 10 years after graduation from flight school. It used to be 6 years. Additionally, the demand for the number of military pilots has decreased. When both of these factors are accounted for, the pool of military pilots available to be hired by airlines is decreasing. The number of civilian pilots being hired by the airlines has risen to the point that in recent years there are more civilian pilots than military.

Q: Capt. Cox, for long-haul commercial flights, there is a relief Captain to enable the workload to be divided and keep the pilots within their regulations. Do such regulations exist for military pilots, for example Air Force One flying from D.C. to Hawaii?

— Michael O'Neil, Greenwich, R.I.

A: Military regulations vary depending on the type of flying. As an example, some long- distance bomber crews have different rest crew augmentation capability than the transports, consequently there are different requirements.

Air Force One is a totally different operation. I do not know what their requirements are but they understand fatigue management and I am confident they take the appropriate actions.

Q: I'm current servicing in the US Armed Forces and my goal is to become an airline pilot. At my first base, should I pursue a degree first or use the money that I earn to take flying lessons off base until I obtain my college degree?

— ajhjr, Texas

A: I would suggest continuing your studies to get a college degree. That will provide you with options if a medical issue or other issue caused you not to be able to fly professionally. I would encourage you to take as much of the ground school online as you can. That will keep your interest up while getting some of the required ground training done.